Proust, Marcel

commenting on his article on Beardsley, hoping that he will have gathered from his telephone message his keen joy at his letter and his desire to realise at once his project [for a reading of a fragment of his unpublished book about his late secretary and companion Gabriel Yturri], asking if he would allow lend him his fragment, stating that he only takes in what he reads for himself and when alone, observing that for him reading is solitude, noting that he would know that had he glanced through his preface to Sésame et les lys, informing him that he has started to venture out a little, noting that God knows what weeks of crisis shall follow each sortie of his, telling him that he does not wish to suffer the cruel experience of missing him while he is out, giving him the time when he may find him in, making observations on his Hortensias bleus, which he thinks he understands and loves, and returning a copy of the same [for him to inscribe]; in a poignant closing passage Proust states that the fine weather, which he senses without feeling, gives him a great desire for colour, nature and things sensible to the eyes, and asks whether he might have any poetic photograph or sensitive object that he could lend him for diversion's sake, stating that this would be very precious to him with his very sad life; finally he thanks him for his kindly concern for his health, and asks him to consider that he will leave his bed, without dressing, one day in around September

...Ce n'est au fond pas un mal, au contraire, que vous n'ayez pas été libre pour cette lecture, si vous consentiez à me prêter le fragment, car je ne me rends compte que de ce que je lis moi-même et seul. Pour moi[,] lecture c'est solitude...Ces beaux jours, que je pressens sans les voir, me donnent un grand désir de couleur, de nature, de choses sensibles aux yeux. Si vous aviez quelque photographie poétique, quelque objet sensible que vous puissiez me prêter pour m'en divertir et en rêver, ce serait bien précieux pour moi dans ma vie si triste...



6 pages, 8vo, [Paris, 26 March 1907]

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

A wide-ranging letter written to the French aesthete and dandy Robert de Montesquiou (1855-1921), the model for Baron de Charlus in Proust's À la recherche du temps perdu. The autograph diverges in places from the text in Philip Kolb, ed., Correspondance de Marcel Proust, vii (1981), pp. 121-123.